The primary initiative of the Centre for Criminal Justice (CCJ) is the Community Outreach Programme, which has as its main focus the rights of women and children. The programme helps women and children, particularly in rural and peri-urban areas, to easily and efficiently access justice services, and the protection of their rights. The programme also helps other members of the community who do not have access to justice. It was agreed that the programme would seek to:

  • Establish effective and sustainable Community Outreach Support Centres that would promote and guarantee women's and children's rights.
  • Provide gender related legal assistance to women in the rural areas of KwaZulu-Natal.
  • Assist in the establishment of community-driven women's victim support groups.
  • Build capacity of staff and volunteers to provide protection services and legal remedies to communities by providing training in legal skills.
  • To conduct action orientated research for improving and refining the Programme to the benefit of the community;
  • Research the impact of criminal justice on women and children; and
  • Provide legal information, as well as human rights and legal education to members of the public.

Map: Location of Support Centres There are presently fourteen Community Outreach Support Centres in the midlands and northern KwaZulu-Natal, the first one having been opened in February 1997 in Pietermaritzburg. The Support Centres are run by co-ordinators recruited from the communities they serve. These co-ordinators are all women since their primary function is to assist victims of rape and abuse, commonly perpetrated by men against women. Deployed two per centre, co-ordinators receive training as paralegals to give them a basic knowledge of the legal system, as well as other training to equip them to deal effectively with community problems. Simultaneously, the Director of CCJ and the team leaders also provide legal information guidance and back-up support regarding various laws and other related legal matters. The workload and performance of the co-ordinators are always monitored, to ensure that their training is appropriate to the demand on their services. The selection process of the co-ordinators involves local community members as well as other role players from the community.